There are many settings and circumstances in which an automobile must be parked or stored without benefit of a protective garage or enclosure. The auto is thus exposed to the elements, and may suffer for the exposure. Dirt, dust, dew, tree sap, bird droppings, ice, and snow may collect on the surface of the auto, rendering cleaning and even driving of the auto problematical. Given the fact that there are more and more autos on the highways, and an insufficient availability of parking garages for those autos, it follows that a great many motorists perceive a need for some convenient form of temporary protection for their vehicles.
There are known in the prior art many forms of temporary car covers, the most common comprising a fabric construction shaped to fit about a generic automobile conformation. Generally, the fabric cover is secured about the body of the automobile by a plurality of hooks or the like which are releasably joined to the lower edge of the body. The cover is generally rolled or folded for storage. Thus, the fabric cover must be unrolled or unfolded for use, arranged over the auto in proper orientation and position, and hooked to the auto. It may be appreciated that the use of a fabric auto cover is laborious and time-consuming, and is therefore inconvenient and disconsonant with modern life.
It is evident that there is a need for an auto cover arrangement that is easily deployed and stored, and that such an arrangement would likely be commercially successful. However, the state of the art leaves much to be desired in terms of convenience and ease of use. The patent literature discloses several forms of self-storing auto covers, usually easily deployable and mechanically or automatically retracted for storage. A significant drawback is that such devices are either incorporated into the body of the auto in permanent fashion, or require permanent installation on some structural portion of the auto. These factors determine that such covers must be installed as original equipment, or require custom installation as a specialty item. In either case, the unmet aftermarket demand, comprising the many autos already on the highway, is not addressed.